The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1887-09-04

Ceecs IN which the Ameries. Pabiisher Nee
Not Intrrfcrc with the InnarfeKA.


| Not raterfere with the Importers.
The foreign author Is not without some
protection against what are called the ptracies
ofAmerican publishers. Art and cheap labor
have combined to give him o foothold In the
American market. and though It 10 only slen-
der foothold 1t Is enough to make him wish the
ground broader and 1rmer The total Of the
import trade In books. maps, engrsvinGs, etch-
ings, and othor printed matter In the United
States 10 considerable. In the year 1886 II
amounted to over t3.25O.OO0. and this sum
represents about the average value Of such
importations for the past few years.
The best protected Of the English authors
are those who are not too well known at homo
or abroad, or whose subjects are not Of sum-
Client general interest in this country to Justify
any OF our publishers In bringing out Ameri-
] can editions OF their works. OF this character
is the recently published book ON European
politics and diplomacy, supposed to have been
written by Sir Charles Dixie. It is an expen-
sive work. costing IS COPY; and the importers
| have thus far had the market for It's sale en-
tirely in their own hands. They will probably
continue to hold the monopoly. too. for though
tho profits on the sale may be considerable, tho
| average American cares little for contempo-
rary European affairs In any more elaborate
form than Is furnished In cablegrams TO tho
daily press. But Of course among the many
foreigners Of all nationalities living in the
United States there must be found some de-
mand for such work. and it Is likely TO prove
more profitable to American importers than .
new novel by William Black.
But 1t is the finished art and antiquity Of
some foreign works that give the chief dignity
to the import trade. and these are the features,
also. which bring large proportion Of the
| profits. We call ourselves q great manu-
featuring nation: and from the utilitarian
point Of view the claim is well founded. We
arc beginning to supply ourselves with nearly
al the coarse products Of Art q
are only ,enteripe upon the boundarios Of
and. are not skilful in presenting our
works in the most p attraStiys form: American
iarity This Is not sn neeessSriIy Serious reilee
| ton on their excellence. It would be- hard to
tell whether nature most frequently finds OK;
usually mineiss those two features in design
be q better criticism to say that American 10.
ans ere s1 snd
sense In color and c o lon. 'Ne'''
No better illustration OF the difference be.
tween AMERICAN and foreign decorative art
books can BE- examined side by side; LineSl
Just rs rectsnsuar as %nesher; bS, there Is
= wonderful difference to be observed some
% hs p Ssn Hsfs ohna s # tss sa Ha
YOU see That tho spirit which guided the hands
monks. still survives in France. and ven
turss to assert is oyer the
i sgssestiys Of the most hIshiy peT.
delicately tinted, the ornamentation is exactly
aud wi m avA
the first leaf and extends to the last. One Of
with water-color painting from the hands Of
an excellent artist. and following through tho
pictures printed alternately upon sill and upon
press Of the volume is worthy Of its company.
ssSsass sss Y 81. to shs1 taste Hhs
Here, too are coapie Of volumes containing
the works a Of the poet Rogers Issued IN 1880 BY
est der i've it, cSe
merit from It's association with imaginative
art but It Is SIMPLY spesimen Of the first com.
s sys 81 Wba h
@ IN q
boS Bsna it hs n ss Eye
sSia%S: SIs re ~ sids s and SS,s@ ny
gently adopted fashions. but this edition Of
Roeers,s works proves that It is only re-
manner. although printed more than fifty
years ago and 4 M9aId not be an encroesh,
Rogers on %Soe ss Sc ssnss ss
known TO 90 more delicate and truer than that
Of his poet might ,Sa
IN 6sre Ct ne
Pook%skins and IL the man Who Cares e as s we'll
for his tea service as his tea. and can afford the
v ss 2 6ay a b: tS e IL 5
The Germans. as their art is illustrated in
manufacturers Of books. They seem TO care
little for the setting Of their literary gems, |
fhsir publications.. as seen upon the e Shelves
Of our lingering houses. are al bound In cloth
They are hGw
asr wiz
and With
nation. German importations run largely also
s t. Gd not
with books IN tariff s,hed slss. and made to pay
sIss the s,sss
lowing next to the English importstions In The
But even here the n American s publisher /. The
bette noir Of oil the importers. Not even In
Germany will he allow popular new work to
escape capture, but, presto. on its appearance.
It Is Reproduced by his German printers in the
original, and offered to German readers In this
country at prices lower than they must pay
for even ,u, a ,. elS9th.5oupd copy of, the
fabulous cheap labor Hence some OF |
our leading importing houses import no Ger.
such works. In common with French works.
report that the latter have much the larger
true since the German importations are much
larger than French importations
Americans will always be struck by the pe-
euliarities OF English books bound In cloth
The leaves are rarely II ever cut. and tho
backs are attached to the volume only at the
corners in such manner as to create the i'm
preston that the book is about to fall In
Tor the workmanship is pretty Arm. and it is
quite possible that its fragile appearance is =
handle with greater care an object that seems
30 perishable. This system OF binding has
also some less questionable advantages. The
laayaR and 1eXibla than In |